Exclusive Interview with NASTY Founder: How a Market-Specific Brand Strategy Led to Rapid Success in South Africa

Key Points: Why Has NASTY Topped the South African Market?

·Early Entry, Fast Execution: Since 2023, NASTY has focused on South Africa, seizing the early-stage growth window of the local vape market while avoiding saturated competition in the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East.

·Localized Operations: From pre-launch hype to in-store displays and activation campaigns, the brand independently executed a full go-to-market strategy ahead of launch.

·Proven Playbook, Strong Momentum: A dual-track approach of online pre-marketing and offline activation quickly built brand momentum and secured consumer mindshare.

·Clear Regional Strategy: South Africa focuses on disposable products, precisely matching local demand, while other regions are approached with tailored strategies.

Additional Insights | Market Strategy & Product Adjustment

·Product Line Rebalance: Starting in 2025, NASTY will refocus on e-liquids in response to tightening global regulations on disposable products.

·Expansion Philosophy: Rather than pursuing broad expansion, NASTY emphasizes deep cultivation of existing markets. The UK, once a core market, is now part of a mid-term revitalization plan.

【By 2Firsts】On June 19, at the World Vape Show in Dubai, 2Firsts interviewed Pak Din, founder of Nasty. Pak Din reviewed the brand's development path, detailed the transition from e-liquid to device products, and shared his thoughts on current product structure and regional market strategies, particularly the rapid growth of Nasty in the South African market.

Open-System Products Gain Momentum as NASTY Plans a Return to Its Core E-liquid Business

Pak Din shared that Nasty was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in Malaysia. Initially, it was an e-liquid company operating under the brand name Nasty Juice. The company gained early brand recognition during the era of high-powered vape devices with signature flavors like “Cashman Mango,” making inroads into European, American, and Middle Eastern markets. It was reported that many customers would come into stores and directly ask for “Cashman,” with the flavor’s recognition at times even surpassing that of the brand itself.

In 2018, NASTY began expanding into the EU and UK markets while gradually broadening its product portfolio. In 2019, the brand launched a 2ml pod system series and became one of the earlier overseas brands to enter the disposable vape segment.

By 2020, with the brand’s growing international presence and a shift in positioning, the company officially adopted the more universally recognizable name “NASTY.”

Over the past two years, disposables have become the company’s main revenue source. In 2024, the company estimates that disposable products account for over 70% of its total sales, with pod systems and e-liquids making up a smaller share.

However, as countries like the UK and others across Europe begin introducing restrictions or bans, disposable vapes are facing increasingly tight regulatory pressure. Meanwhile, open-system devices and e-liquids are beginning to see a resurgence. In response to these shifting dynamics, Pak Din stated that NASTY will shift its primary focus back to e-liquids in 2025, aiming to adapt to market changes and leverage its traditional strengths.

Additionally, since 2024, the nicotine pouch segment has gained significant momentum, with many vape brands entering the space. At this year’s Dubai vape expo, nicotine pouches have emerged as a major direction for product line expansion. However, no such products were showcased at the NASTY booth. Pak Din explained that NASTY currently does not have any nicotine pouch offerings and has no short-term development plans for the category. He emphasized that the brand will continue to focus on its three existing product lines, avoiding uncontrolled diversification that could compromise product structure.

How Did NASTY Capture the South African Market with a Region-Specific Strategy?

Within NASTY’s global market strategy, South Africa has been clearly identified by Pak Din as the brand’s most important growth market at present. Since launching in 2023, NASTY has rapidly expanded in the country, quickly rising to become the leading e-cigarette brand in South Africa.

On June 6, during the “Global NGP Market Trends Forum by 2Firsts” hosted by 2Firsts, an audience member asked "which e-cigarette brand is currently the most mainstream in South Africa?" T.D. Ryklief, co-founder of South African vape distributor MISTLABS, immediately responded: “NASTY is currently the most well-known brand in the market.” This statement serves as a strong endorsement of NASTY’s successful region-focused strategy.

About "Why Bet on South Africa?", Pak Din explained that the decision to focus on South Africa was based on two factors: the saturation of the European and Middle Eastern markets, and an assessment of South Africa's demographic structure and consumer potential. In his view, South Africa is an "emerging market" in the early stages of e-cigarette development, offering a window of opportunity where brands and distribution channels have yet to be firmly established—making it possible to break through.

As for how NASTY quickly secured a leading market position, the company attributes its success to a combination of favorable timing, strategy, and execution: first, an accurate assessment of market timing; second, alignment with the right distribution partners; and third, a localized operational strategy deployed even before market entry. All marketing activities were brand-led—from pre-launch hype to in-store displays and sales mechanisms—with comprehensive planning and execution completed ahead of launch.

Specifically, Nasty uses an integrated online-offline go-to-market strategy in South Africa, including:

·Staged online pre-launch campaigns

·Simultaneous preparation of retail display materials and sales policies

·Standardized activation programs across offline channels

Currently, Nasty adopts a differentiated product strategy by region to align with local regulations and consumer preferences:

·South Africa: Focus on disposable products

·Middle East: Dual focus on disposables and e-liquids

·Malaysia: Primarily pod systems

Globalization is one of the core topics in today’s e-cigarette industry. When asked about further market expansion, Pak Din stated that the company’s overall strategy emphasizes deepening its presence in existing markets rather than broad, scattergun expansion.

He mentioned that the UK market was an important stronghold for the brand between 2016 and 2022, but its market share has declined in recent years. Going forward, the company plans to reinvest and redevelop its presence in the UK in the medium to short term.

Establishing a China Office, Outsourcing Manufacturing, Leading the Pace

Amid increasing regulatory pressure in overseas markets and growing homogenization of disposable products, NASTY aims to maintain brand recognition and pricing power by controlling product design and launch timing. Pak Din told 2Firsts that NASTY positions itself as a "pure brand company," emphasizing independent control over product design, market strategy, and promotional pacing.

Currently, all of NASTY’s product industrial designs are developed by its internal team, without using ready-made molds from contract manufacturers. The brand emphasizes bold color contrasts and high saturation in its visual language to preserve differentiation in a highly homogenized disposable market.

Regarding manufacturing, NASTY maintains a stable partnership with a contract factory it has worked with for over five years. Although this factory is not among the industry's largest players, it meets the brand’s needs for flexibility and structural collaboration. The OEM primarily handles product structure and functional development, while product selection, evaluation, and final versions are led by the brand team. This "outsourced structure, internal brand control" model is common in the industry, especially for overseas brands lacking in-house manufacturing capabilities, serving as a balance between stable supply and moderate control.

Given that global e-cigarette manufacturing is primarily concentrated in China, NASTY is among the earlier overseas brands to establish a local office there. The China team not only manages traditional supply chain and project implementation tasks but also actively participates in industrial design, structural development, and some go-to-market activities.

At the Dubai exhibition, photos of three core members of the China team were displayed at the NASTY booth. This move aims to highlight the local team’s involvement in the global product system and to enhance trust and collaboration throughout the market’s upstream and downstream.

Click the image below to enter the special coverage.